Summary and Implications

Abstract

In previous chapters, we have reviewed existing literatures and presented new evidence in regard to the relationship between environmental stress and cognitive performance, personal control, and health. We have suggested the advantages of viewing this work in the framework of “costs of coping” and “contextual” analyses of stress. Finally, we have presented data from the Los Angeles Noise Project that in many cases helps to exemplify and clarify our views and at the same time raises other questions about the process of coping with stressors in the natural environment. As noted earlier, our theoretical proposals are often not directly tested by the data we present. Instead, they reflect a growth in our conceptualization of the stress and coping process that has occured over the 8 years since we began collecting data for the project. Next we will summarize our major arguments and conclusions and discuss their implications for future research and for public policy.